How to recover Instructions on Overview

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Posted on by HC-16040112-0

On Copilotstudio.microsoft.com.environments, I have saved Instructions on Overview yesterday. But It is disappeared today. Why disappeared and how to recovery it?

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Calling actions from Copilot Studio

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sumit_artesian 261 on at

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Hi @HC-16040112-0,

Frankly speaking, I doubt you can recover that. Copilot Studio has this issue where it removes stuff, whether it is instructions or variables from topics, the list goes on. It is buggy and hard to work with.

I recommend backing up your instructions and other text-based configurations in a .docx file somewhere to avoid losing them.

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Haque 3,217 on at

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@HC-16040112-0,

It can happen due to how the agent’s configuration and instructions are managed.

Causes:

Sometimes, when you edit or add instructions via the "Describe" feature, previous instructions may appear to disappear if the changes overwrite or don’t merge properly.

The instructions might not be permanently saved if there is a glitch or if the save operation wasn’t fully completed.

The agent may still retain some underlying behavior or knowledge even if the visible instructions are missing.

This issue has been reported by other users, and Microsoft has acknowledged it but also noted it may not always reproduce consistently.

If there any chance we can recover:

Check if you can re-edit and re-save the instructions: Try to re-enter your instructions carefully and save again, ensuring the save completes without errors.

Test the agent’s behavior: Even if instructions appear missing, test if the agent still performs as expected.

Backup your instructions externally: Keep a copy of your instructions outside Copilot Studio (e.g., in a document) so you can reapply them if needed (from now one).

Look for updates: Microsoft may release updates or fixes addressing this behavior, so keep your environment updated.

Microsoft Support: If instructions disappear repeatedly or unexpectedly, report the issue to Microsoft Support for investigation and potential fixes. This will increase the number of users faces the issue and it will become in pririty.

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André Arnaud de Cal... 629 on at

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Hi,

When changing the agent, there is a separate save button for the details and the instructions. Are you sure you clicked on the correct or all save buttons available?

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deepakmehta13a 355 on at

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Hi @HC-16040112-0,

Unfortunately, there is currently no guaranteed way to recover disappeared Instructions in Copilot Studio once they are removed.

Possible reasons:
• The save operation may not have completed successfully
• The “Describe” feature may have overwritten existing instructions
• A temporary Copilot Studio glitch/UI issue occurred
• Sometimes Copilot Studio randomly removes instructions or variables due to known platform instability

Things you can try:
• Re-open the agent and check again in another browser or Incognito mode
• Re-enter the instructions and save carefully
• Make sure all available Save buttons were clicked (details + instructions)
• Test the agent behavior to verify whether the old instructions are still partially applied

Recommendations:
• Always keep a backup of Instructions externally (.docx, OneNote, Notepad, etc.)
• If this happens repeatedly, raise a Microsoft Support ticket so the issue gains visibility and priority

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